Final Draft – March 27, 2015
GRANT ADMINISTRATION GUIDE
LAND AND WATER CONSERVATION FUND
(LWCF)
State of California
Natural Resources Agency
Department of Parks and Recreation
Office of Grants and Local Services
“Creating Community through People, Parks, and Programs”
Send Applications and Correspondence to:
Street Address for Overnight Mail:Calif. Dept. of Parks and Recreation
Office of Grants and Local Services
1416 Ninth Street, Room 918
Sacramento, CA 95814 / Mailing Address:
Calif. Dept. of Parks and Recreation
Office of Grants and Local Services
P.O. Box 942896
Sacramento, CA 94296-0001
Phone: (916) 653-7423
Website: www.parks.ca.gov/grants
Department Mission
The mission of the California Department of Parks and Recreation is to provide for the health, inspiration, and education of the people of California by helping to preserve the State’s extraordinary biological diversity, protecting its most valued natural and cultural resources, and creating opportunities for high-quality outdoor recreation.
The Office of Grants and Local Services (OGALS) Mission Statement
The mission of the Office of Grants and Local Services is to address California’s diverse recreational, cultural and historical resource needs by developing grant programs, administering funds, offering technical assistance, building partnerships and providing leadership through quality customer service.
OGALS VISION GOALS
v Proactive in meeting California’s park and recreation needs through innovative grant programs and customer service.
v Committed to providing quality customer service in every interaction and transaction as honest, knowledgeable, and experienced grant administrators.
v Sensitive to local concerns while mindful of prevailing laws, rules and regulations.
v Responsive to the needs of applicants, grantees, nonprofit organizations, local governments, and legislative members, who are our partners working to improve the quality of life for all Californians by creating new parks and recreation opportunities.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Process for Grantees 5
Special Requirements 7
Eligible Costs 9
Grant Payments 13
ACCOUNTING AND AUDIT REQUIREMENTS 20
AUDIT CHECKLIST 22
Appendix I - Grant Contract 23
APPENDIX II – Status Report 32
APPENDIX III – Deed Restriction 34
DEFINITIONS 41
LWCF Procedure Guide 6 Administration Overview
OGALS welcomes you
to the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF)
Grant Administration Guide
v Use this guide for administering your project after the grant has been awarded through the application process. The grant administration guide contains important information about administrative requirments (grantee requirements).
v ogals recommends that you review the post completion park stewardship guide.
· The post completion park stewardship guide contains important information about the operation and maintenance requirements in perpetuity for land within a 6(f)(3) boundary map approved by the National Park Service (nps).
v In addition to this guide, the Department completes an Open Project Selection Process (OPSP) document which describes the public process used in the development of the guide and in the operation of the Land and Water Conservation Fund program in California. The OPSP is part of the california outdoor recreation plan (corp), and is available on the dpr website or be obtained by contacting ogals.
v Please call or email ogals with any questions or comments. Contact information for ogals is given on the front cover of this guide.
v You can find more information about ogals grant programs at www.parks.ca.gov/grants. It features a link to our lwcf website page, which provides technical assistance materials and updates, staff contacts, the grant administration guide and the post completion park stewardship guide.
v Visit ogals on Facebook to learn about successful projects.
Why Parks Matter
parks are unique places where children play, people exercise, families bond, seniors socialize, youth are mentored, cultures share and celebrate their differences, and everyone connects with nature. For these reasons, vibrant parks funded by this program will be a cost-effective means of creating humane, livable communities.
Process for Grantees
Congratulations on your recommended lwcf grant award! Use this guide for the administration of your lwcf grant following the start date on your Contract.
This guide includes updated grant administration requirements and replaces the May 27, 2010 guide.
If you have questions, ogals contact information is on the front cover of this guide, and a list of project officers is available at www.parks.ca.gov/grants.
The steps below summarize the process and rules for grantees.
Start of Grant Performance Period
Your grant performance period will be shown on your contract.
· Costs incurred before or after the grant performance period are not eligible for reimbursement.
· Exceptions
o pre-award planning costs, which were approved in the application phase.
o waviers of retroactivity: Approved waviers of retroactivity are for acquisition or development costs incurred prior to an encumbered contract. However, the wavier of retroactivity must be requested during the application phase and approved by nps before the costs can be incurred.
Contract
applicants become grantees when the contract is signed by its authorized representative and the dpr. See page 23 for a sample contract. The process for signing the contract is as follows:
a. After nps approves the application, ogals sends a unsigned contract to the grantee’s authorized representative for signature
b. The grantee returns the signed contract to ogals.
c. ogals returns the encumbered contract to the grantee.
Payments
grantees may request reimbursement payments after contracts are encumbered. Except pre-award costs approved during the application phase, grant funds may only be expended on eligible costs incurred during the contract performance period.
Grant Payments
· After the contract is fully executed (encumbered), the grantee may request reimbursement payments. See page 13 for grant payments.
· ogals will send a grant Progress Status Report form found on page 33 to the grantee beginning approximately six months after approval of the contract, and continuing every six months until a grant completion packet is received. The grantee must complete, sign and return these grant Progress Status Reports within 30 days of receiving them. Payment requests for grant funds will not be processed if there are overdue grant Progress Status Reports.
· The grantee completes the grant scope and submits the grant completion packet on page 18 to the project officer.
· ogals verifies the grant scope was completed by conducting a final site inspection for development projects before final payment is approved. For acquisition projects, the grantee must submit a copy of the supporting documents listed on page 9 showing the acquisition was completed.
· The Department (dpr) processes the final payment request.
End of Grant Performance Period
grant funds liquidate at the end of the grant performance period. Send grant completion packets to ogals no later than three months before the end of the grant performance period.
· ogals recommends that grantees send grant completion packets to ogals at least six months prior to the end of the grant performance period. Six months provides adequate time for ogals to review grant completion packets, request and receive revisions to grant completion packets if necessary, conduct final site inspections, and process final payments through the State Controller’s Office.
· ogals cannot guarantee that the State Controller’s Office can process final payments by the end of the grant performance period, if grant completion packets are received less than three months before the end of the contract performance period.
· If the State Controller’s Office is unable to process payments before the end of the grant performance period, unpaid balances of grant funds will revert to the lwcf State Reapportionment Account.
Record Retention
The grantee is required to keep all project records/source documents for all expenditures related to each grant for at least five years following grant scope completion and at least one year following an audit. A grant scope is considered complete upon receipt of final grant payment from the State.
Note: Authority cited: Section 5099.10 Public Resources Code. Reference: Sections 5099-5099.12, Public Resources Code.
LWCF Procedure Guide 6 Administration Overview
Grant Administration Guide for 2006 6 CEQA Pending Contract
Bond Act (Proposition 84) Grants
Special Requirements
This section explains how and when each of the special requirements listed below must be met.
· The grant Payments section starting on page 13 also lists when these items are required for each type of payment request.
· grant Progress Status Reports on page 33.
· Deed Restriction on page 34.
Note: The Deed Restriction requirement replaces the Memorandum of Unrecorded Grant Agreement (Memorandum). Deed Restrictions are not required if a Memorandum was previously approved by ogals for the same property.
· scope change Requests on page 8.
· lwcf Sign on page 8.
Grant Progress Status Report
To monitor the progress of projects, every six months ogals will send grant Progress Status Reports to grantees to complete. grantees must return grant Progress Status Reports to ogals within thirty days from receipt. This requirement continues until ogals receives grant completion packets. Payment requests will not be processed if grant Progress Status Reports are overdue. See the sample grant Progress Status Report on page 32, which is subject to change.
Deed Restriction
The Deed Restriction is required by ogals to record a restriction on the title to the property. The restriction ensures that the property is used for public outdoor recreation consistent with Section 6(f)(3) of the lwcf act and the contract for in perpetuity.
A Deed Restriction is not required only under the following condition:
If a Memorandum of Unrecorded Grant Agreement (MOUGA) or Deed Restriction was previously recorded on the property.
A Deed Restriction is required under the following conditions:
· For development projects, the Deed Restriction must be recorded on the title to the property prior to final payment.
· For acquisition projects, the Deed Restriction is required after the acquisition is complete.
Scope Change Requests
To maintain the integrity of the competitive grant award process, any scope change
requests will be carefully evaluated and must be approved by ogals in writing. This includes removal or addition of, or significant modification to, the recreation features and major support amenities listed in the original grant scope/Cost Estimate Form. ogals discourages proposals that eliminate or greatly reduce a project’s recreational use or capacity.
Changes to Project Liquidation Date
grantees are to complete the project and demonstrate the project to be fully usable within the contract performance period. In unique situations, a one-year extension may be requested when unforeseen circumstances arise and the grantee is unable to complete the project within the contract performance period. All requests for a one-year extension must be submitted to the ogals project officer in writing, and be signed by the authorized representative. ogals requires a letter explaining the need for an extension and a revised timeline showing how the project will be complete and fully usable if the one-year extension is granted. An extension must be approved by ogals and nps.
Signage
A permanent sign acknowledging lwcf assistance must be installed near the entrance to the project site prior to final inspection. The sign must recognize the federal-State-local partnership role in creating high-quality outdoor recreation areas and facilities. Access to the lwcf Sign Guidelines is on the ogals website at: www.parks.ca.gov/grants Follow the link under Annual Programs to the lwcf Program. Or, see the lwcf sign section in the lwcf post selection stewardship guide.
development projects in excess of $500,000 require temporary signage during construction.
LWCF Procedure Guide 7 Special Requirements
Eligible Costs
This section provides rules and examples of eligible costs for acquisition and development for the lwcf grant Program.
Only costs incurred after the date of federal approval will be considered eligible for reimbursement with lwcf funds or as match unless pre-award project planning costs were established in the application or a waiver of retroactivity was requested and approved by nps during the application process for the applicant to proceed with the acquisition or development.
The following provide examples of eligible costs for acquisition.
ACQUISITION COSTS / EXAMPLESPurchase price of the property and other activities necessary to complete the acquisition. / · Capital expenditures for acquisition of real property, easements, and other rights and interest in real property when the cost is incurred within the approved grant performance period. Title reports, appraisals, and escrow fees are not eligible costs.
· For the expenditures to be allowed, tenure must be for perpetuity, in order for the expenditures to be match.
The following charts provide examples of eligible costs for pre-award project planning costs and construction costs.
pre-award project planning costs / EXAMPLES /Costs incurred during the planning, design, and permit phase of the project, before construction begins. These costs may be incurred up to three years prior to sending the application to ogals and still be reimbursed or eligible for match. See the lwcf application guide to see how the pre-award project planning costs were established. / · Public meetings/focus groups/design workshop costs.
· Plans, specifications, construction documents, and cost estimates.
· Permits.
· ceqa: See the lwcf application guide.
· PD/ESF Form or nepa analysis: See the lwcf application guide.
· Section 106: See the lwcf application guide.
· Premiums on hazard and liability insurance to cover personnel or property.
· Bid packages.
· Employee services: see accounting rules for employee services on page 20 for more information.
· project/grant administration (excluding grant writing) and accounting.
construction costs / EXAMPLES /
Costs incurred during the construction phase of the project when ground-breaking construction activities such as site preparation, grading, or gutting begins.
Costs incurred during the construction phase of the project when ground-breaking construction activities such as site preparation, grading, or gutting begins. / · Site preparation, grading, gutting.
· Foundation work.
· Purchase and installation of permanent equipment: playground equipment, benches, signs, display boards, sound systems, video equipment.
· Construction supplies and materials: may be drawn from central stock if claimed costs are no higher than supplies or materials purchased elsewhere.